Improved lacing for boots and shoes



' y UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcEaa IMPROVED LACING FOR BOOTS AND SHOES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 55,852, dated June 26, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, CHARLES GOODYEAR, Jr., of New York, in the county and State of New York, have invented certa-in new and useful Improvements in Lacing-Eyes for Boots and Shoes and other Wearing-Apparel; and I hereby' declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the same.

This invention relates to method of lacing or lacing device for which Letters Patent of the United States were issued to Jacob Auten reith on the 6th day of January, 1863, and reissued February 20, 1866, the metallic lacing eyelet being arranged so that the lacing-cord runs through the same without traversing the leather of the shoe. Theselacing-eyes, as heretofore constructed, were arranged either on the upper, as shown by the said Autenreith, or on the edge of the welt or binding; land my invention particularly relates to the latter; and its object is to make and apply these lacing-eyes at less cost of labor and material than this could be done heretofore, and thus to cheapen the manufacture of shoes with lacingeyelets such as hereinbefore referred to. To this effect I form the lacing-eyelets-z', 6:, the lacing-eye proper, shank, and loop-of a single piece of wire by bending the ends into eyes, so as to stand at right angles to each other. ing-eye proper, while the other is the eye whereby the said lacing-eye is fastened, by means of a rivet, to the shoe, and which, in contradistinction to the lacing-eye, I call the loop 7 or rivet eye. This lacing device is applied to the shoe by inserting the loop and shank between the two layers or thicknesses of the welt, so that the lacing-eye only shall project from the edge of and at right angles to the upper.

My invention therefore consists in inserting and fastening between two layers of leather the lacing device, so that the lacing-eye alone shall protrude from the upper and at the edge of the part to be laced; also, in forming the lacing device of a single piece of wire, the ends ot' which are shaped or bent into eyes; also, in the employment, in combination with such lacingeye, of a rivet traversing either or both sheets of leather between which the lacer is confined 5 also, in the combination, with such lacing and fastening device, of a folded One of these eyes constitutes the lacleather welt or upper, the edge having incisions at equal distances apart, and at right angles to the folded edge. for the passage through them of the lacing-eyes.

To ena-ble others to make and use my invention, I shall now proceed to describe the manner in which the same is or may be carried into effect by reference to the drawings, in whichl Figure l is a perspective view of a shoe or boot to which my improvement is applied. Fig. 2 is a perspective view ofthe folded edge or welt of the shoe and lacil'ig-eyes.. The for mer, together with the rivet-head, is shown in red ink. The lacing-eye proper is represented in black lines. Fig.3 is a similar view, a portion of the upper sheet of leather heilig removed to exhibit the manner in which the lacers are arranged between the two sheets of leather. Fig. 4 is a transverse section, on a b iu Fig. 5, of the welt ou an enlarged scale. Figs. 5 and 6 are front and rear elevations of the same.

In the said drawings the lacing-eyelet is shown to be composed of three parts, g, s,and m, g being the lacing-eye proper, s the shank, andm the eye, whereby the device is fastened to the shoe or boot, or to a binding welt or strip of leather or other material making part of the shoe or boot to which it is attached. These three parts are composed of a single wire, both ends of which are bent to form the lacing-eye g on the one end and the rivet-eye m on the other. The intermediate piece of wire, which I call the shank7 or link, s, is of sufficient length to allowthe rivet to be placed at a distance from the edge of the part to be laced to insure strength without materially interfering with the ilexibility or limberness of the upper.

The two eyes, it will be seen, are formed on the shank at right angles to each other, so that when one of the eyes is placed at or in a' position parallel with the sheets of leather to which it is secured the other will be at ness, but provided with a Welt or binding. The lacingeyelet is let in or inserted between such two thicknesses of leather, or in the fold of the binding or Welt, and secured in place by a rivet, p, traversing the eye m, and, as shown, both thicknesses of leather, or it may traverse but one thickness of leather. rllhe latter plan need not interfere with giving the shoe or boot ornamental buttons or studs produced by the heads of rivets, for the lacingeyelet may be clinched to the upper-leather only. The other thickness of leather may lap under and act as a protectinglining against the projecting head.

If the eyelet is used iu connection with a folded strip or Welt or binding, then I prefer to make transverse incisions zr, through which the heads or lacing-eyes proper, g, of the eyelet are passed and adjusted previous to being secured by the rivets.

It will be understood that this inode of inaking and attaching eyelets is applicable to shoes or boots of any kind ofmaterial other than leather, and also to other descriptions of wearing-apparel.

Having thus described my invention and the manner in which the saine is or may be carried into effect, what I claim as lny invention isl. The method herein described ofapplying lacing-eyelets to boots and shoes by inserting substantially as herein described, the employment of rivets traversing one of the eyes of the lacer and either or both thicknesses of leather between which the said laceris confined.

4. The employment, in combination with lacers and rivets, as hereinbefore described, of a folded leather welt, binding, or equivalent, the folded edge of which having at right angles to it incisions through Which the lacingeyes protrude, substantially as herein shown and described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification before tivo subscribing witnesses.

GHAS. GOODYEAR, JR.

Witnesses A. PoLLoK, C. R. SHERWOOD. 

